NERR National Prep Showcase – New England Standouts (Part 3)

<p>This weekend I attended the Northeast Recruiting Report’s (NERR) National Prep Showcase at Albertus Magnus College in my own New Haven, Connecticut. While the games may have been muted in importance by the impending flock of Yale and Harvard alum attending The Game, the showcase brought together some of the nation’s best prep school talent. And as a fairly new New England scout, I couldn’t have been more excited to finally get to see some of the region’s best teams go at it.</p> <p>Now for the heavy hitters... the New Englanders! This is the third part of a 4-part examination of the best NE talent at the tournament, to be published throughout the week for your enjoyment. There was more than enough incredible Northeast kids in attendance, so with only 4 parts, I had to look hard and long at my notes to find the kids that really stood out to me. Here’s the third batch:</p> <p><strong>Daysjuan Waters, Vermont Academy (VT), 6-5, 2022</strong></p> <p>For his size, Waters was a great shooter that was able to light up instantly from anywhere on the floor. A long and strong wing, Waters was able to get to his spots on the floor by using screens or bullying defenders. And even if he got into a tough situation on offense, he was able to finish off jumpers from all spots on the floor. He put up 16 points in a tough loss to Massanutten when I watched him on Friday. Some of his moves are big time pro moves and I think his game will translate well to the next level. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1204320" first="Blair" last="Thompson"], Northfield Mount Hernon (MA), 6-7, 2022, Columbia commit</strong></p> <p>Thompson came out white hot against Mt. Zion Prep on Sunday afternoon. The Columbia commit is a 6’7" sharpshooting wing with a whole lot of confidence in his shot. He splashed 3 quick ones to open the game against Mt. Zion Prep, going on an 11-point tear to give NMH a much needed lead at the beginning of the game. Thompson is a long wing with good size at 6’7", enabling him score in a variety of other ways when needed. Athletically, he’s very poised and is a consistent jump threat from anywhere within the restricted area. His length gives him good props as a defender. He should make an immediate contribution to one of the Ivy League’s worst basketball teams when he gets on campus next season.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1190223" first="Rowan" last="Brumbaugh"], Northfield Mount Hernon (MA), 6-2, Northwestern commit</strong></p> <p>What doesn’t Brumbaugh do on the floor? He did just a bit of everything in his contest against Mt. Zion Prep on Sunday. The ESPN Top 100 ranked recruit was wheeling and dealing on the offensive end of the floor, putting up a comfortable 15 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. He’s got fantastic court awareness which he uses to stifle defenses and make the right play. He’s a great passer with the ability to find open teammates from anywhere on the floor. He was making plays that even I couldn’t see on the sidelines because of his trust in his teammates and his incredible awareness. His build is tough, with broad shoulders and strong arms that let him ball out against defenders of all sizes. The jumper is solid and overall offensive prowess is next level. Brumbaugh is simply a killer and will continue to destroy defenses all year long. </p> <p><strong>Otega Oweh, Blair Academy (NJ), 6-3, Oklahoma commit</strong></p> <p>Oweh’s big breakout onto the national scene this summer with Team Final was one of the oft-remembered storylines from the EYBL. It was a really great opportunity to figure out why this kid blew up like he did. Offensively, he did so many things right it was hard to write them all down. He was more than effective with the jumper, even with the weird kink he has in his jumpshot. Getting to spots and knocking down jumpers was the name of the game for Oweh, and he left defenders useless with the amount of space he could create between them on his jumpshot. Oweh is also like a hot knife through butter when going downhill. He finds crafty ways to make holes in the defenses, which he exploits and charges through to either get fouled, dish to a teammate, or just put the ball in the basket. He put up 32 big points in a close loss to Worcester Academy and is one of the better players in his class.</p>